Dodgers manager Walter Alston's legacy in Darrtown

Hall of Fame manager Walter Alston died nearly 30 years ago, but the memories of his time in Darrtown carry special significance to this day.

Walter Alston was inducted into the Baseball Hall of Fame in 1983(Photo: Milo Stewart Jr./National Baseball Hall of Fame)

When Walter Alston became the Brooklyn manager 60 years ago this season, Darrtown became Dodgertown.

While the Ebbets Field faithful had to wait decades for its first and only World Series title in 1955, the small Butler County town Alston lived in during the offseason helped laud him and celebrated four titles in 10 years between Brooklyn and Los Angeles.

"The Darrtown celebrations after the '63 and '65 World Series were quite something for a small little town," said Kim Ogle, granddaughter of the late Alston.

"After the final out for each series, I remember people shooting off shotguns literally painting the town."

Fireworks were too difficult to obtain, Kim said. Everyone had shotguns in town.

The telephone poles were also painted blue and white noting how the Dodgers were world champions or welcoming home Walter "Smokey" Alston. The phone rang nonstop at the Alston residence on Cherry Street.

A parade with a converted school bus and parties followed. A bonfire across from the Hitching Post in town was also hosted.

Alston, his wife Lela and grandchildren Rob and Kim rode in a convertible behind a band one year. Those were the days in Darrtown.

"The celebrations," Rob Ogle said, "were a real slice of Americana."

Sixty years after Alston's Major League managerial debut, Harry Ogle – Alston's son-in-law – enjoys recalling how the same Cherry Street house built in 1952 hosted several Dodger greats over the years.

When the Dodgers had an off day in Cincinnati, Rob remembers his grandparents would invite members of the organization for dinner. (Rob said he remembers the dinners occurred after the team moved to Los Angeles in 1958).

Sandy Koufax, Don Drysdale, Don Sutton and Maury Wills were among some of the players who went to dinner in Darrtown over the years. Even the traveling media was invited; and of course so was Vin Scully, who last week announced he will return for his 66th consecutive season in the radio booth in 2015.

Steaks, baked potatoes and salad were recalled as on the menu items for the ballplayers the house, Harry said.

"It was a chance to relax in a country setting and get away from the day to day life on the road," said Rob, who is a marketing consultant in Dallas.

The dining area where the ballplayers sat is still there. Ogle, 84, lives in the house where he and his late wife Dodie used to help the family cook the meals. Dodie was the daughter of Walter and his late wife Lela.

Darrtown never forgot Alston, a native of nearby Venice, Ohio. The Walter "Smokey" Alston Highway sign is visible entering town from Route 177. (He was nicknamed for how fast he threw as a youth).

There is also a diamond-shaped memorial in town with career highlights listed beneath a photo.

Having their grandfather back in Darrtown each offseason for his 23-year Major League managerial career was like living in their own City of Angels for Kim and Rob.

Rob said his grandfather was very cordial to those around him and he could often be found at a lumber shop in Hamilton or the hardware shop in nearby Oxford wearing his bib overalls into town. In retirement he bought a pair of motorcycles and thoroughly enjoyed life.

Alston's handiwork is all around the house, including the brickwork above the fireplace and furniture in the billiards room. Several trophies, plaques and photographs adorn the walls of the billiards room where he was a pool shark. He was also known as a superb bridge player.

"He was truly larger than life for us as kids," said Kim, who is working on her Ph.D. in gerontology at nearby Miami University and is the funeral director at Ogle & Paul R. Young Funeral Homes.

Kim and Rob have fond memories of sharing experiences some of the game's greatest stars of the 1950s and 1960s in Darrtown and in Los Angeles.

"I was to some extent awestruck but you learn from an early age…these are regular guys," Kim said.

Walter Alston's family shares warm memories of his time in Darrtown during the 1950s, 60s and 70s when he was with the Dodgers.
The Enquirer/Mike Dyer

Starting at nine years old, Rob started to travel with his grandfather and would sit in the dugout and take batting practice; he traveled by himself for his first trip to Milwaukee.

Kim remembered the family trips to Los Angeles at either the Coliseum or Dodger Stadium each year and recalled sharing time on the plane with Drysdale and Koufax. Rob received his first pair of baseball spikes in the 1960s from Drysdale.

Rob filmed a commercial with Maury Wills in 1964 for Delco batteries in Los Angeles – he received a $68 check from the Dodgers base-stealing great.

The late Hall of Fame catcher Roy Campanella gave Kim some catcher's equipment as a youngster that she still has in her possession. As a child, Kim was referred to as "Little Campy" by her pediatrician and her grandfather often said she worried more about the Dodgers than Alston did.

Although Alston, who played baseball and basketball at Miami University, worked in two major cities as a manager, he always looked forward to returning to Darrtown and didn't crave the Hollywood spotlight.

"He hated going out to dinner probably because he ate so many meals on the road," Rob said. "Remember he basically had a night job the majority of the time. By the time he got out of the ballpark and got home it would be around midnight."

The Dodgers won seven National League pennants and four World Series titles during his tenure. He retired in 1976. He appeared in one Major League game as a player in 1936 with the Cardinals.

Alston won 2,040 games during his career and was elected to the Baseball Hall of Fame 1983 by the Veterans Committee. Because of complications from a heart attack, he couldn't attend the induction ceremony that summer.

Alston told Rob to give the acceptance speech in Cooperstown.

Rob said he tried to give a speech his grandfather would want – thanking the O'Malley family along with the Dodger greats over the 23 years. He also spoke about his grandfather's ability to manage a club especially during the advent of free agency.

"It was truly, truly the biggest honor I ever had," said Rob, who was the assistant general manager for the Dodgers' Triple-A affiliate Albuquerque from 1976-80.

Time stands still in the billiards room where Alston often exhibited his pool skills for at least an hour after dinner. He also did paperwork at the desk on the left side of the room.

A clock on the right side of the room remains frozen at four o'clock – the time he died on Oct. 1, 1984 in Oxford.

Alston's memory radiates in not only the baseball treasures and mementos, but how he embraced being a family person at home every autumn.

"To me, (the pool room is) my grandfather's legacy," Kim said.

"I come in here and sometimes –because I grew up with him as my grandfather – it didn't always hit me who he was. And I come in here sometimes and think 'wow this is impressive' – even now."